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The memo received by BNP Media staffers this week alerting them to 25 percent salary cuts for the foreseeable future includes a line that jumps off the page almost as much as that “25 percent” figure: “Minimum wage will be the floor for this reduction.”It’s a line that assures employees the company won’t be cutting below minimum wage (which of course, would be illegal), and only applies to those support positions that may be hovering around minimum wage after the 25 percent cuts. But still, are things so bad that we have to be assured now that salaries won’t be cut to minimum wage? Salary cuts usually start at the top and the Henderson family (who owns BNP) have taken theirs as well. However, an associate editor making $40,000 who is hit with a 25 percent salary cut is suddenly making $30,000. Forget trying to live on that in publishing capitals like New York City-that’s a tough hit anywhere (BNP is based near Detroit).As publishers continue to make cuts to keep their businesses alive, they need to be mindful of labor rules and regulations in their state, particularly with employees below a certain salary level. As Southern Breeze editor Mark Newman noted in FOLIO:’s March issue, many high level employees (particularly editors) need to “stop being figureheads and do some work.” But for those entry and associate level employees, for whom the historic trade-off has always been “low pay but great experience,” the returns are getting harder to justify. The company leaders who impose these cuts will need to balance their contribution margins against the eventual pushback: The unwillingness of their teams to tolerate major pay cuts even as they’re being asked to do significantly more work. It’s a dangerously narrow line to walk.read more

Tags Tech Industry 15 Comments Tuesday is Equal Pay Day. Getty Images While Equal Pay Day might sound like some kind of holiday, it’s actually a stark reminder that men and women don’t always get paid equal money for equal work.In fact, when looking at part-time and full-time workers in the US, women earned about 85 percent of what men did in 2018, according to data released in March from the Pew Research Center.The annual marker, which falls on Tuesday this year, symbolizes how far into this year women would have to work in order to have earned as much as men did in the previous year. Usually around Equal Pay Day, there’s a new offering of research from various sources shedding light on how and why that is. In the tech industry— which regularly grapples with numbers that show it’s predominantly made up of white men— disparity in pay is shrinking, but slowly. Glassdoor, a site that corrals employment information on companies, looked at more than a half million salary reports and found that at the pace we’re going, it’s going to take 51 years to close the pay gap. In its March report, called Progress on the Gender Pay Gap: 2019, Glassdoor found the adjusted pay gap in tech is 5.4 percent, above the national average of 4.9 percent. The adjusted pay gap incorporates factors such as experience and education when comparing the earnings of men and women. While it’s improving, the gap has closed just 0.5 percentage point since 2016.”It’s not a surprise that there’s still a fairly large gap when you consider the fact that most of the highest paying jobs are still predominantly male,” said Daniel Zhao, a senior economist who worked on the report.Tech recruiting platform Hired also put out a report last week called The State of Wage Inequality in the Workplace, and found that when men are offered the same job role women, they’re offered higher salaries 60 percent of the time. The report also found that in the tech industry, white and Asian women made 97 cents for every dollar white and Asian men made. The amount dropped for black (89 cents) and and Hispanic women (91 cents).Meanwhile, not all tech workers are convinced there’s a problem. The reported stated that “64% of female survey respondents believe a racial wage gap exists due to racial identity, while 54% of men believe it exists.”Over the years, some companies have set goals to close their pay gaps. Tech companies like Salesforce, Intel and PayPal have all said they’ve closed their pay gaps. “There’s a cultural phenomenon where women are paid less,” Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff told 60 Minutes in April 2018, when recounting how the company conducted an audit to correct its pay imbalance. (Editor’s note: 60 Minutes is owned by CNET’s parent company, CBS.)One reason progress in tech might be slow, Zhao said, is because there are so few women in the field to start with. He said that industries making quicker progress, like the nonprofit world, tend to be already more gender-balanced.It isn’t just money that women are missing out on. “People spend a third of their lives at their jobs,” Zhao said, “a lot of their overall happiness and satisfaction with life is tied up into how they feel about their job… reducing the amount of discrimination and stress is really important.” Share your voiceread more

null Aston Martin DBS Superleggera has gorgeous looks and… Now playing: Watch this: Enlarge ImageLeave it to Aston Martin and Zagato to create a car with a grille that literally flows when the vehicle is started up. Aston Martin Aston Martin and design house Zagato have a six-decade-long relationship, combining forces to create some of the most stunning vehicles on the road. As part of Zagato’s 100th birthday, Aston Martin will offer up 19 examples of the new DBS GT Zagato, and the automaker is finally ready to show off its production-ready shape and offer up a bit more information about what to expect.Aston Martin on Tuesday unveiled a small handful of pictures that show the production form of the DBS GT Zagato alongside its old-school sibling, the DB4 GT Zagato Continuation. Starting with a DBS Superleggera, the body picks up some wild new styling, including a full carbon roof that eliminates the rear glass, as well as some stunning taillights, new flourishes on the sides and a curvaceous front end.To accommodate the roof, Aston Martin created a camera-based rearview mirror that still allows the driver to see behind the vehicle without any rear windshield. Consider it like those mass-market mirrors that let you swap between normal and camera-based viewing, only the former is impossible because there actually isn’t any rear glass at all. If you think that’s wild, take a look at the grille. It looks intricate, sure, but it’s even crazier than you might think. The grille comprises 108 pieces of diamond-shaped carbon fiber. When the car is off, the grille looks sealed up with a flush appearance, but upon starting the car, those pieces “flutter into life,” as Aston puts it, physically opening up to provide the car’s V12 engine with air. Good luck trying to get that repaired anywhere but the dealership.At a cost of roughly $8 million, the grille had damn well better mimic a living being. But then again, that price tag doesn’t just include one car. DBS GT Zagato buyers also receive a DB4 GT Zagato Continuation model, a handbuilt coupe finished in the same hue as the original DB4 GT Zagato cars that were built in the 1960s. All of a sudden, paying $8 million for two utterly stunning small-batch creations doesn’t sound so obscene.Enlarge ImageThe rear end of the DBS GT Zagato is breathtaking, and not just because it lacks a rear windshield. Aston Martin Aston Martin Preview • 2019 Aston Martin DBS Superleggera: Beast mode More about 2019 Aston Martin DBS Superleggera 2020 Hyundai Sonata first drive: An attractive and compelling midsize sedan Exotic Cars Superluxury Cars Performance Cars Coupes 2020 Hyundai Palisade review: Posh enough to make Genesis jealous Share your voice 0 More From Roadshow 2020 BMW M340i review: A dash of M makes everything better Tags 8:32read more

Tags 2016 Chevy Colorado diesel: A 7,700-pound hauler, 30-plus mpg runabout 0 6 Photos 2015 Ford Focus offers more safety and better looks More From Roadshow Ford null Originally published at 12:08 p.m. PT.Update, 1:40 p.m. PT: Adds statement from Ford. 2019 Hyundai Elantra GT N Line review: A legit compact performer Enlarge ImageFord’s Focus and Fiesta models have been plagued by serious issues with their PowerShift dual-clutch automatic transmissions. Roadshow Way back in 2009, Ford’s new Fiesta hit dealer showrooms across the US. It was the first Fiesta to hit the US in decades and it looked better than ever, and its fuel economy figures were seriously impressive. That latter attribute was thanks in large part to their new and innovative dual-clutch automatic transmissions, which Ford called PowerShift, and referred to internally as DPS6.Here we are 10 years later, and those transmissions are proving to be a massive thorn in not only owners’ sides, but increasingly they’re becoming an issue for the mothership back in Dearborn. The problems with the transmission include many reports from owners that it will drop into neutral between gears, leading to a lack of acceleration. Other reports state that the cars will lurch forward and shift jerkily.These issues are so prevalent, and Ford’s reaction to owners’ complaints have reportedly been so unsatisfactory, that now the US government is looking at getting involved.Several Democratic congressmen — including Rep. Frank Pallone of New Jersey, who is on the committee that oversees the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration — have called for a review of the ongoing situation, the Detroit Free Press reports.Ford dealers interviewed by the Free Press stated that they hadn’t received clear instructions on how to handle customer concerns going forward, or how (or whether) to charge customers for transmission repairs to their PowerShift-equipped vehicles.Ford’s representatives stated that the company had issued a service bulletin explaining how to handle the increased number of customer concerns and informed dealers that affected vehicles brought in before July 19 would receive extended warranty coverage, something it’s done before for individual components of the transmission. The bulletin promised further communication on or around the 19th, but to our knowledge, no new bulletins have been issued.”The DPS6 transmission was all-new technology from Getrag when it was introduced nearly a decade ago to improve fuel economy in Fiesta and Focus models. We launched those vehicles in good faith — like others, only after they reached key development milestones. Quality issues emerged after they were on the road,” Ford representatives said in a statement. “We acted quickly and determinedly to address those issues. Resolving them took longer than we expected — that frustrated and was inconvenient for many customers, some still today, which we regret. Along the way, we have rightly gone to great lengths to correct the problems: understanding what caused them, alerting dealers and consumers, recommending and making repairs, and extending warranties. In the meantime, automobiles using the DPS6 transmission were and remain safe to drive.”Given the likely cost of each individual repair, combined with the sheer number of vehicles equipped with the faulty gearboxes around the US, a forced recall by NHTSA would likely be a very, very expensive proposition for Ford. 2014 Ford Fiesta Ford Now playing: Watch this: 2016 Ford Explorer review: Go road-tripping in Ford’s updated, EcoBoost-powered SUV Share your voice 2:31 Car Industry Hatchbacks Sedansread more

US Marines returned to Afghanistan’s volatile Helmand Saturday, where American troops faced heated fighting until NATO’s combat mission ended in 2014, as embattled Afghan security forces struggle to beat back the resurgent Taliban.The deployment of some 300 Marines to the poppy-growing southern province came one day after the militants announced the launch of their “spring offensive”, and as the Trump administration seeks to craft a new strategy in Afghanistan.Commander of US and NATO forces in Afghanistan General John Nicholson attended a handover ceremony marking the return of the prestigious force, the first Marines in Afghanistan since 2014, an AFP photographer said.Part of a regular troop rotation announced in January under the Obama administration, they will arrive in stages, eventually numbering some 300 who will take part in NATO’s train, assist and advise mission.Helmand for years was the centrepiece of the US and British military intervention in Afghanistan—only for it to slip deeper into a quagmire of instability.“In those days Afghan security forces were tiny and just got started,” Brigadier General Roger Turner told AFP. “With the leadership in place now they… are poised to do much better.”The Taliban effectively control or contest 10 of Helmand’s 14 districts, blighted by a huge opium harvest that helps fund the insurgency.Around 30,000 people fled fighting in the province in 2016, mostly seeking refuge in provincial capital Lashkar Gah, with the city at times practically besieged.The US has some 8,400 troops in Afghanistan with about another 5,000 from NATO allies, mostly taking part in the training mission.Pentagon chief Jim Mattis warned of “another tough year” in Afghanistan when he visited Kabul this week as part of the Trump administration’s review of Afghan policy. Nicholson has called for a few thousand more troops to help break the “stalemate”.Mirza Mohammad Yarmand, a retired Afghan general based in Kabul, was optimistic.“If the Afghan forces and the US Marines jointly fight the phenomenon of the terrorism in southern Helmand, we will have tangible results,” he told AFP.But former Marine James Clark, who served twice in Helmand and now writes for military website Task & Purpose, called the deployment “half-measures”.“What lasting gains can our small military presence accomplish in Afghanistan that we couldn’t achieve during the height of the troop surge?” he told AFP.‘Butcher of Kabul’ returnsThe Helmand ceremony came as one of Afghanistan’s most notorious warlords, ex-prime minister Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, returned to public life Saturday after more than 20 years in exile.Hekmatyar, white-bearded and clad in his trademark black turban, called on the Taliban to lay down their weapons and join a “caravan of peace” as he spoke at a rally in Laghman province.Known widely as the “Butcher of Kabul”, Hekmatyar is chiefly remembered for his role in the bloody civil war of the 1990s, in which he stands accused of killing thousands of people in the capital Kabul. He is set to return there on Sunday.His comeback following a landmark peace agreement with President Ashraf Ghani in September has been hugely controversial in Afghanistan, sparking revulsion from human rights groups and residents of the capital.Afghanistan has seen intensified Taliban attacks across the country, leaving Afghan forces—already beset by killings, desertions, and vacuums in leadership and morale—stretched on multiple fronts and facing soaring casualties.Last week the Taliban delivered a stinging blow as militants dressed in Afghan army uniforms slaughtered at least 135 young recruits at a northern base, according to official figures—though multiple sources say the death toll is much higher.The Marines were among the first US forces sent to Afghanistan after the 2001 terror attacks in the United States.Several thousand were deployed in Helmand, the deadliest province for US and British forces, where they engaged in bitter combat with the Taliban insurgency.The US is also targeting Islamic State’s affiliate in Afghanistan, earlier this month dropping its largest non-nuclear bomb on the jihadist group’s hideouts.Two US troops were killed Wednesday while fighting IS militants near the blast-site in eastern Nangarhar province in an incident potentially involving friendly fire, the Pentagon has said, adding an investigation has been launched.read more

Share To embed this piece of audio in your site, please use this code: From Tuesday’s Senate debate between Ted Cruz and Beto O’Rourke, to the disappearance of a Saudi journalist, to the rescheduled debate between Congressman John Culberson and challenger Lizzie Pannill Fletcher, to the HISD Board playing politics with the interim Superintendent position, our experts break down the latest political stories with an eye for how they might affect Houston and Texas.Joining host Craig Cohen for this week’s discussion are David Branham, professor of political science at the UH-Downtown, and Mark Jones from Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy. X Listen 00:00 /25:43read more

Kolkata: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee tweeted on World Television Day, mentioning the initiatives taken by her government for further growth of the tele-industry and benefit of television artistes and technicians.In a tweet on Wednesday, the Chief Minister stated: “Today is #WorldTelevisionDay. To give more support to the television industry, we are building the tele academy (complex) at Baruipur, #Bangla.” It may be recalled that on January 18, the Chief Minister had addressed the Tele Academy Awards 2017-18 that was held at Najrul Mancha. In the same programme, Banerjee had stressed upon the need of setting up the tele academy at Baruipur in South 24-Parganas. She had maintained that construction of the tele academy will be completed within a year. Also Read – Rain batters Kolkata, cripples normal lifeIt may be mentioned that setting up the tele academy will be of great help for the people involved in the industry. It will also inspire more people to get involved in the industry. The tele academy at Baruipur will be a state-of-the-art one, with all sorts of facilities available in it. Moreover, it will open a new arena for the tele-industry in the state. In the tweet, Banerjee has also maintained: “We have also raised the mediclaim for television artistes and technicians from Rs 1.5 lakh to Rs 2.5 lakh annually.” Also Read – Speeding Jaguar crashes into Mercedes car in Kolkata, 2 pedestrians killedIt may be recalled that the announcement regarding the increase in the amount of medical insurance was made by the Chief Minister in a January 18 programme. She had said while addressing the programme: “Television has become one of the most important medium now-adays. Many TV serials have become popular. A large number of people are involved in the profession. The artistes toil hard to do a serial. They often work till late night. We have decided to increase the medical insurance for the television artistes from Rs 1.5 lakh to 2.5 lakh per annum, in addition to the Rs 1 lakh accident benefit that they get.” Besides announcing the medical insurance, the Chief Minister also took a series of other initiatives to support the television artistes and technicians.read more

Kolkata: State Education minister Partha Chatterjee on Monday expressed his displeasure over the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS)’s decision in cancelling the D.El. Ed examination in Bengal, citing leakage.”The test has been cancelled only in Bengal but not in any other state where the examination was held. When an examination is cancelled for alleged leakage, it should be done in all the states where the examinations are supposed to be held. Why only in Bengal? Is the NIOS regulated by the Centre,” Chatterjee questioned. Also Read – Speeding Jaguar crashes into Mercedes car in Kolkata, 2 pedestrians killedThe rescheduling of the examination on February 3 in which candidates have to appear for two subjects each of three hours’ duration has also been an area of concern for those who have already sat for the examination held on December 20 and 21 respectively. The state Education secretary has already written a letter to the concerned authorities either to revoke its decision of cancellation or reconsider the rescheduled date. “The teachers have submitted a deputation to me citing their difficulty to appear for two papers on a single day. So we have decided to raise the issue with the NIOS,” Chatterjee said. Also Read – Bose & Gandhi: More similar than apart, says Sugata BoseThe teachers who have been already teaching in institutions but do not have B.Ed degree can clear D.El. Ed examination and accordingly meet the requisite criteria for teaching as mandated by the National Council of Teacher Education (NCTE). Meanwhile, the state Education department has decided to raise the salary of Siksha Bandhus from Rs 5,994 to Rs 8,392 a month. There are presently 3,925 Siksha Bandhus working at the grass-root level of Sarba Siksha Abhiyan (SSA). “The salary of those associated with project management related work under the SSA will also be enhanced by 40 percent on an average,” Chatterjee said. The minister expressed his optimism that induction of Class V in primary education will be completed by 2020 with some areas to be worked upon.read more